WHEN TO REFER - ADULTS

 

ADULTS

 

WHEN TO REFER

 

• Trouble hearing a doorbell or a telephone ringing
• Complaints that speech sounds “muffled”; it is loud enough, just not as clear as desired
• Frequently asking for repetition of what has been said
• Complaints that people are mumbling when they speak
• Preferring the volume of electronic devices louder than friends or family members
• Great difficulty hearing in noise
• Needing to look at someone when they are talking in order to understand
• Missing parts of conversations
• Responding inappropriately to questions or comments
• Tinnitus (ringing, buzzing, crickets, static noises in the ears)
• Balance problems
• Risk factors noted below

 

 

RISK FACTORS FOR HEARING LOSS

 

• Family history for hearing loss
• Aging
• Use of ototoxic medication (medicine that is toxic to the ears)
• Complaints of tinnitus (ringing, buzzing, crickets, static sounds in the ear)
• Menieure’s Disease (episodes of fluctuating hearing loss with roaring tinnitus and dizziness)
• Viral disease (causing sudden hearing loss)
• Perilymph fistua
• Head trauma
• Excessive noise exposure